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Investment Glossary

The asterisked (*) investment terms in this glossary satisfy the fee disclosure glossary requirement of federal pension law (ERISA regulation 404a-5) by helping plan participants and beneficiaries understand terminology related to designate investment alternatives offered under the plan.

Others terms in this glossary are provided to help plan participants and beneficiaries understand terminology used in fee disclosure documents and under the plan. 

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12b-1 Fee

 

A

A 3(16) Fiduciary Service

Account Balance*

Account Maintenance Charge

Account Realignment

Accumulation Units*

Active Management

Additions

Administrative Fee

Administrative rebate

Advisor Fee

Aggressive

Allocated*

Annual Admin Service Fee

Annual operating expense

Annual Rate of Return

Annualized periods

Appreciation

Asset

Asset allocation

Asset allocation funds

Asset-based fee

Asset Charge*

Asset classes

Average annual total return

Average credit quality

Average effective duration

Average effective maturity

 

B

Balanced Fund

Barclay's Capital Aggregate Bond Index

Basis Point (BPS)

Benchmark*

Beneficiary

Bond

Bond Fund

Bond Rating

Broker

Brokerage Window

Brokerage Window Participant Fee

Brokerage Window Plan Annual Maintenance Fee

Brokerage Window Plan Setup Fee

 

C

Capitalization (cap)

Capital appreciation fund

Capital Gain Distribution

Capital loss

Capital preservation

Cash Equivalent

Cash Value/Withdrawal Value

Category/classification

Collective investment fund

Common stock

Company stock fund

Compounding

Conservative

Consultant/advisory fees

Contribution Census System Non-Usage Fee

Core investment options

Corporate bond

Correction

Covered Service Provider

Credit risk

CUSIP number

Current yield

Cyclical Stocks

 

D

Deductions*

Defined benefit plan

Defined Contribution Plan

Department of Labor (DOL)

Designated investment alternative

Distribution

Distribution Fee

Diversification

Dividend

Dividend Distribution

Dow Jones Industrial AverageSM(DIJA)

 

E

Earnings

Electronic Deconversion File Package

Eligibility Provisions

Emerging Markets

Employer securities

ERISA

Equities

Expense Ratio*

 

F

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

Fees and expenses

Fee shares

Fiduciary

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)

Fixed Income

Fixed Income Fund

Fixed Interest Account (FIA)*

Fixed return investment

Foreign equities

Forfeiture Reallocations

Form 5500

Free shares

Fund fact sheets

Fund of Funds

 

G

Gains/Losses*

Glide path

Global Fund

Government bond

Group Annuity

Growth Fund

Guaranteed Interest Fund (GIF)

 

H

Hands-off investor

Hands-on investor

Hardship Review Fee

High-yield Bond

Holding period

 

I

Inception Date

Income Fund

Index

Index Fund

Interest/interest rate

Interest rate risk

Interfund transfer

Intermediate-term bond

International funds

Internal Revenue Code (IRC)

Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

Installation Fee

Investment Account*

Investment advisor or investment manager

Investment Advisor Fee

Investment elections

Investment grade corporate bond

Investment manager/advisory fee

Investment objective

Investment Option Charge (IOC)*

Investment revenue rebate

Investment time frame

 

L

Large Cap

Large-cap fund

Large-cap stocks

Liable shares

Lifecycle fund

Lifestyle Fund

Lipper

Liquidity

Liquid Interest Fund (LIF)

Load

Load fund

Loan Administration Fee

Loan Application Fee

Loan Initiation Fee

Long-term fixed income

 

M

Management Fee

Managed Portfolio Fee

Manager tenure

Market Capitalization

Market risk

Market Value Adjustment (MVA)

Maturity

Mid Cap

Mid-cap fund

Mid-cap stocks

Minimum Contribution Fee

Money Market Fund

MSCI EAFE Index

Mutual Fund

My OneCheck Online Fee

 

N

NASDAQ

NASDAQ® Composite Index

Net Asset Value (NAV)

New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)

Non-cyclical Stocks

No-Load Fund

 

O

OneAlliance Asset Charge

 

P

Participant

Passive Management

Payroll Deduction Date

Per Capita

Per Participant Account Fee

Percent in top-10 holdings

Periodic payments

Plan

Plan Administrator

Plan Expense

Plan Sponsor

Plan Sponsor Advice Fee

Portfolio

Portfolio manager

Portfolio Turnover Rate

Price-to-book ratio (P/B ratio)

Price-to-earnings ratio (P/E ratio)

Principal

Pro Rata

ProNvest Fee

Prospectus

 

Q

Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO)

QDRO Review Fee

Qualified retirement plan

 

R

Rate of Return

Real rate of return

Rebalance

Recordkeeping Fee

Redemption

Redemption Fee*

Redemption fee percent

Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) Fees

Return

Revenue Sharing*

Risk

Risk tolerance

Round trips

Round-trip restriction

Russell indexes

Russell 2000® Index

 

S

Sales Compensation Disclosure

Sector fund

Security

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Separate Accounts*

Share

Share Class

Shareholder

Shareholder-Type Fees

Short-term bond

Short-Term Investment Fund (STIF)

Small Cap

Small cap fund

Small cap stocks

Stable Value Account*

Stable Value Fund

Standard & Poor's 500SM (S&P 500®)

Statement of Additional Information

Stocks

Stock Fund

Stock symbol

Sub-advisor

Summary prospectus

 

T

Target date fund

Target risk fund

Test File Package

Third Party Plan Expense

Ticker symbol

Time horizon

Total Annual Operating Expenses

Total Return

TPA Fee

Trading restriction

Transaction Date

Treasury bill

Trustee

Turnover

 

U

Unit Value*

U.S. Treasury securities

 

V

Valuation date

Value funds

Variable Investment Plus (VIP) Factor

Variable return investment

Vesting

Volatility

 

W

Weighted Average Interest Rate

Withdrawal

Withdrawal Charge

Withdrawal Value/Cash Value

Wrap fee

 

Y

Yield


 

12b-1 Fee

A fee charged by some mutual funds to cover promotion, distributions, marketing expenses and sometimes commissions to brokers. 12b-1 fee information is disclosed in a fund’s prospectus, is included in the stated expense ratio.


 

A 3(16) Fiduciary Service

A 3(16) Plan Administrator is an administrative fiduciary on a retirement plan as defined by ERISA section 3(16).


 

Account Balance*

The dollar value of a participant’s account.


 

Account Maintenance Charge

An annual charge for each participant account.


 

Account Realignment

Taking existing money in your account and redistributing it to a new mix of investment options.


 

Accumulation Units*

A device used to measure the value of a separate account investment option.


 

Active Management

The trading of securities to take advantage of market opportunities as they occur, in contrast to passive management. Active managers rely on research, market forecasts and their own judgment and experience in selecting securities to buy and sell. A non-index fund is an example of an actively managed investment.


 

Additions

Transactions that cause an increase in an account balance.


 

Administrative Fee

A fee charged by vendors providing administrative services to the plan, including trustee, recordkeeping, legal, audit and actuarial services.


 

Administrative rebate

Any portion of a fee charged to your account that is credited back to your account by vendors providing administrative services to the plan, including trustee, recordkeeping, legal, audit and actuarial services.


 

Advisor Fee

The entire fee is charged to a plan sponsor in an amount separately agreed upon with a registered investment advisor or an investment advisor representative for services to the plan.


 

Aggressive

An investment approach that accepts above-average risk of loss in return for potentially above-average investment returns.


 

Allocated*

Invested, as directed, into an account.


 

Annual Admin Service Fee

An annual fee based on plan assets.


 

Annual operating expense

Represents the expenses the separate account or underlying mutual fund charges against the assets of the fund, including investment management fees, 12b-1 fees and other operating expenses. This expense is withdrawn through daily adjustments during the fund valuation process. Performance for the investment option is always shown net of this expense. The operating expense amount is determined by the investment option provider and is subject to change at any time. See Expense ratio and Fees and expenses.


 

Annual Rate of Return

The annual rate of gain or loss on an investment expressed as a percentage.


 

Annualized periods

Adjusting an income or return to an annual basis. Also called annualized return.


 

Appreciation

An increase in the value of an investment.


 

Asset

Anything having value that is owned by an individual, institution or business.


 

Asset allocation

The diversification of investments among categories of assets, such as short-term investments, stocks and bonds.


 

Asset allocation funds

An investment strategy aiming to balance risk and reward by apportioning a portfolio’s assets according to an individual’s goals, risk tolerance and investment horizon.


 

Asset-based fee

A fee or expense added to an investment fund to pay for one or more services.


 

Asset Charge*

A charge equal to a percentage of your account's separate account investments.


 

Asset classes

A group of securities or investments having similar characteristics and behaving similarly in the marketplace. The three primary asset classes are equities (e.g., stocks), fixed income (e.g., bonds) and cash equivalents (e.g., money market funds).


 

Average annual total return

The yearly average percentage increase or decrease in an investment’s value that includes dividends, gains and changes in share price.


 

Average credit quality

An average of all the credit quality positions for a fund’s bond holdings.


 

Average effective duration

A measure of a fund’s interest-rate sensitivity — the longer a fund’s duration, the more sensitive the fund is to shifts in interest rates. Duration is determined by a formula including coupon rates and bond maturities. Small coupons tend to increase duration, while shorter maturities and higher coupons shorten duration.


 

Average effective maturity

Average effective maturity is a weighted average of all the effective maturities of the bonds in a portfolio. Effective maturity takes into consideration mortgage prepayments, puts, calls, adjustable coupons, and other features of individual bonds and is thus a more accurate measure of interest-rate sensitivity.


 

Balanced Fund

A fund buying a combination of common stock, preferred stock, bonds, and short-term bonds, to provide both income and capital appreciation while avoiding excessive risk. The purpose of balanced funds (also sometimes called hybrid funds) is to provide investors with a single mutual fund combining both growth and income objectives, by investing in both stocks (for growth) and bonds (for income).


 

Basis Point

A basis point (bp) equals one hundredth of 1 percent. For example; 10 bp equals 0.10 percent.


 

Barclay's Capital Aggregate Bond Index

A common index widely used to measure performance of U.S. bond funds.


 

Benchmark*

The name and returns of an appropriate broad-based securities market index over 1-, 5-, and 10-year periods that are provided as a comparison to the performance data for a separate account investment option.


 

Beneficiary

A person, persons or trust designated to receive the plan benefits of a participant in the event of the participant’s death.


 

Bond

Bond/fixed income securities: Securities paying a fixed rate of interest or a fixed dividend. There are many different types of fixed income securities or bonds, including: corporate bonds or notes, mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, convertible securities, government obligations, “junk” or below investment grade bonds, investment grade securities and foreign bond securities.


 

Bond Fund

A mutual fund that primarily invests in bonds. Some bond funds specialize in a particular kind of bond (government, high quality, junk, etc.), while others will diversify across categories. Bond funds generally pay regular distributions, making them particularly appropriate for investors seeking current income.


 

Bond Rating

A rating or grade that is intended to indicate the credit quality of a bond, considering the financial strength of its issuer and the likelihood that it will repay the debt. Agencies such as Standard & Poor's, Moody's Investors Service, and Fitch issue ratings for different bonds, ranging from AAA (highly unlikely to default) to D (in default).


 

Broker

A person who acts as an intermediary between the buyer and seller of a security, insurance product or mutual fund, often paid by commission.


 

Brokerage Window

An investment alternative available outside of the group annuity contract that allows investment of plan assets through a brokerage firm.


 

Brokerage Window Plan Annual Maintenance Fee

An annual fee to a plan sponsor that elects to offer participants a brokerage window.


 

Capitalization (cap)

The total market value of a company’s outstanding equity.


 

Capital Gain Distribution

Any gain realized from the sale of an investment.


 

Capital loss

The loss in the value of an investment, calculated by the difference between the net purchase price and the net sale price.


 

Cash Equivalent

Short-term securities, such as Treasury Bills, money market mutual funds, or short-term bank certificates of deposit that provide safety and liquidity but historically have only marginally outpaced inflation in terms of return.


 

Category/classification

Funds are classified based on portfolio practice rather than prospectus language. In summary, the process is to find a portfolio’s three-year weighted allocation among large-, mid-, and small-cap stocks; assign a large-, multi-, mid- or small-cap designation; and compare all funds to their relevant Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (using statistical methods) to determine style (growth, core or value).


 

Collective investment fund

A collective investment fund, or CIF, is a fund operated by a bank or trust company in accordance with the regulations issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and comprised of a pooled group of assets of trusts or similar accounts. Collective investment funds operated by national banks or OCC trust companies are regularly examined for compliance by OCC staff as part of the institution’s asset management examination. The ownership of a CIF is divided into units and can only be held by certain qualified investors, such as 401(k) plans.


 

Common stock

An investment representing a share of ownership in a corporation.


 

Company stock fund

A fund investing primarily in employer securities that may be unitized and may maintain a cash position for liquidity purposes.


 

Compounding

Interest or earning on an investment’s principal and reinvested earnings.


 

Conservative

An investment approach accepting lower rewards in return for potentially lower risks.


 

Consultant/advisory fees

The entire fee is paid to a plan sponsor in an amount separately agreed upon with a registered investment advisor or an investment advisor representative for services to the plan.


 

Contribution Census System Non-Usage Fee

An annual fee to a plan sponsor that does not use the electronic census tool.


 

Core investment options

Your core line-up provides you with a variety of investments from which to choose, ranging in objective from capital preservation to growth. Each of the core investments consists primarily of one of the different building blocks, which are usually referred to as asset classes (equities, bonds and cash equivalents).


 

Corporate bond

A bond issued by a corporation, rather than by a government. The credit risk for a corporate bond is based on the payment ability of the company that issued the bond.


 

Correction

A sudden, temporary decline in stock or bond prices following a period of increases. Corrections can be expected over a long-term investment horizon.


 

Covered Service Provider

An entity receiving compensation for providing services to a plan.


 

Credit risk

The risk a bond issuer will default, meaning not repay principal or interest to the investor as promised. Credit risk is also known as “default risk.”


 

CUSIP number

A number identifying all stocks and registered bonds. CUSIP is the acronym for Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures.


 

Current yield

The current rate of return of an investment calculated by dividing its expected income payments by its current market price.


 

Deductions*

Transactions that cause a reduction in a participant’s account balance.


 

Defined benefit plan

A type of retirement plan in which the retired participant receives a specific amount based on salary and years of service.


 

Defined Contribution Plan

A company retirement plan in which the employee elects to defer a portion of his/her salary into the plan. 401(k) plans are a type of defined contribution plan.


 

Department of Labor (DOL)

The DOL is the agency charged with administering and enforcing the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), which includes supervision over pension plans established under ERISA, as well as the parties involved in the establishment, management or administration of any such plan.


 

Designated investment alternative

The investment options chosen by your plan into which participants can direct the investment of their plan accounts.


 

Distribution

Money paid to a participant or beneficiary from the participant’s account.


 

Distribution Fee

A fee for each lump-sum distribution paid.


 

Diversification

The process of investing your money in different kinds of investments rather than concentrating in limited investments. Diversification helps shield an investor from large losses because even if some securities perform poorly, others may perform well.


 

Dividend

Money an investment fund or company pays to its stockholders, typically from profits. The amount is usually expressed on a per-share basis.


 

Dividend Distribution

Payment to mutual fund shareholders of income from interest or dividends generated by a fund's investments. In a retirement plan, these distributions are reinvested in more shares of the mutual fund that paid them.


 

Dow Jones Industrial AverageSM (DIJA)

A widely followed price-weighted index of 30 of the largest, most widely held U.S. stocks.


 

Earnings

Revenue for a specified period of time, after related costs and expenses have been deducted.


 

Electronic Deconversion  File Package

Historical, indicative, and financial data that may be sent to the plan's successor service provider.


 

Eligibility Provisions

Provisions in a plan stating the requirements for an employee to participate in the plan.


 

Emerging Markets

Generally, economies in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Far East, Latin America and the Middle East which may be relatively undeveloped. May also be called developing markets. An emerging market fund invests primarily in emerging market countries..

 


 

Employer securities

Securities issued by an employer who has employees covered by a retirement plan that may be used as a plan investment option.


 

ERISA

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 is the federal law regulating pension plans, including defined benefit (DB) plans and defined contribution (DC) plans. Employers establishing pension plans under ERISA must meet certain minimum standards regarding the management and administration of the plan and its assets.


 

Equities

Types of securities representing ownership in a corporation. Stocks are equities.


 

Expense Ratio*

Expense ratio is the annual operating expenses of the underlying mutual fund divided by the average net assets of the underlying mutual fund. The expense ratio is retained by the investment management company. Gross expense ratio is the unsubsidized annual operating expenses before any fee waivers or expense reimbursements. Net expense ratio is the subsidized annual operating expenses after fee waivers or expense reimbursements.


 

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

A federal agency insuring funds on deposit (currently up to $250,000) in member banks and thrift institutions.


 

Fees and expenses

Charges incurred by participants for various services, including investment advisory fees, plan administrative, legal, recordkeeping and distribution expenses. See Annual operating expense.


 

Fee shares

Redeemed shares that have been charged a redemption fee.


 

Fiduciary

A person with the authority to make decisions regarding a plan’s assets or important administrative matters. Fiduciaries are required to review decisions based solely on the best interests of plan participants.


 

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)

A self-regulatory organization for all securities firms doing business in the United States operating under the supervision of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The organization’s objectives are to protect investors and ensure market integrity.


 

Financial Soundings Fee

A fee that Financial Soundings charges participants for use of their investment advice service.


 

Financial Statements

The written record of the financial status of a mutual fund or company, usually published in the annual report. The financial statements generally include a balance sheet, income statement and other financial statements.


 

Fixed Income

Investments that are fundamentally debt securities. Bonds are a fixed income investment.


 

Fixed Income Fund

A fund that invests primarily in bonds and other fixed-income securities, often to provide shareholders with current income.


 

Fixed Interest Account (FIA)*

An investment option under your group annuity contract supported by the general assets of the company where the fixed rate of interest is credited for a stated period.


 

Fixed return investment

An investment providing a specific rate of return to the investor.


 

Foreign equities

Securities trading primarily in markets outside the United States representing equity ownership in a company.


 

Forfeiture Reallocations

Nonvested portions of terminated participants’ accounts that are reallocated to the accounts of remaining eligible plan participants as provided by the plan.


 

Form 5500

An annual report filed with the Department of Labor that shows plan statistics including participants and assets. Copies of the plan's Form 5500 may be obtained on the Department of Labor's web site and from the Plan Administrator.


 

Free shares

Shares for an investment not subject to a redemption fee.


 

Fund fact sheets

A snapshot of an investment option showing past performance, investment objective and other basic information.


 

Fund of Funds

A mutual fund or other pooled investment investing primarily in other mutual funds or pooled investments rather than investing directly in individual securities, such as stocks, bonds or money market securities.


 

Gains/Losses*

Gains consist of interest credited to amounts in the fixed interest account and in the stable value account and any increase in the value of amounts invested in your separate account. Losses consist of any decrease in the value of amounts invested in your separate account.


 

Glide path

The change over time in a target date fund’s asset allocation mix to shift from a focus on growth to a focus on income.


 

Global Fund

A fund investing primarily in securities anywhere in the world, including the United States.


 

Government bond

Securities pursuing income by investing in a combination of Treasuries, agency securities and mortgage-backed securities.


 

Group Annuity

A contract between an insurance company and a plan sponsor, a plan trustee or a custodian that defines the rights and responsibilities of the parties and the treatment of invested funds.


 

Growth Fund

A mutual fund that holds stocks of companies the fund manager believes will have significantly better revenue and profit growth than the overall market. The growth style of investing is characterized by a view of a share of a company as a claim on the company’s earnings. Growth investors attempt to find companies whose earnings growth will be greater than is reflected in their stock prices.


 

Guaranteed Interest Fund (GIF)

An investment option supported by the general assets of the insurance company where a fixed rate of interest is credited.


 

Hands-off investor

Investors who prefer to have an expert make investment decisions. Hands-off investors may lack the time or the desire to track and manage their own portfolios.


 

Hands-on investor

Investors who prefer to make their own investment decisions and are willing to take the time to actively track and manage their own portfolios.


 

Hardship Review Fee

A fee charged by the insurance company for hardship distribution processing.


 

High-yield Bond

Bond with a rating of BB or lower and pays higher yields to offset its greater risks.


 

Holding period

The minimum period of time an investor must hold shares of a fund before selling them to avoid a redemption fee.


 

Inception Date

The date the fund manager began to buy securities and record investment performance.


 

Income Fund

A fund primarily seeking current income rather than capital appreciation.


 

Index

A benchmark against which to evaluate a fund’s performance. The most common indexes for stock funds are the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.


 

Interest/interest rate

The fee charged by a lender to a borrower, usually expressed as an annual percentage of the principal. For example, someone investing in bonds will receive interest payments from the bond’s issuer.


 

Interest rate risk

The possibility a bond or bond fund’s market value will decrease due to rising interest rates. When interest rates (and bond yields) go up, bond prices usually go down and vice versa.


 

Interfund transfer

Within your account, this refers to moving assets from one investment option into another investment option.


 

Intermediate-term bond

Intermediate-term bond portfolios invest primarily in corporate and other investment grade U.S. fixed income issues and have durations of three-and-a-half to six years (or, if duration is unavailable, average effective maturities of four to 10 years). These portfolios are less sensitive to interest rates, and therefore less volatile, than portfolios having longer durations.


 

International funds

Mutual fund investing in stock and bonds of companies outside of the United States.


 

Internal Revenue Code (IRC)

A federal statute enacted and amended by Congress. The IRC is supplemented by regulations issued by the IRS.


 

Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

A branch of the U.S. Treasury Department responsible for administering the requirements of qualified pension plans and other retirement vehicles.


 

Installation Fee

A one-time fee to install the plan on the insurance company's recordkeeping system.


 

Investment Account*

Each distinct portfolio established within the insurance company’s separate accounts.


 

Investment advisor or investment manager

A person or entity making investment recommendations or conducting securities analyses in exchange for a fee or other compensation, whether through direct management of client assets or through written publications. An investment advisor or investment manager who is appointed by another investment advisor or manager to help manage client assets is called a “sub-advisor.”


 

Investment Advisor Fee

A fee to a plan sponsor in an amount separately agreed upon with a registered investment advisor or an investment advisor representative for services, including models, to the plan.


 

Investment elections

The allocation of contributions into the investments available in the plan.


 

Investment grade corporate bond

A bond rated BBB or higher; generally, investment grade corporate bonds are viewed to be lower risk than lower rated corporate bonds.


 

Investment manager/advisory fee

A fee to a plan sponsor in an amount separately agreed upon with a registered investment advisor or an investment advisor representative for services, including models, to the plan.


 

Investment objective

The goal an investment fund or investor seeks to achieve (e.g., growth or income).


 

Investment Option Charge (IOC)*

A charge equal to the asset charge plus the expense ratio.


 

Investment revenue rebate

The portion of an investment’s annual operating expense received by OneAmerica Retirement Services from non-proprietary fund managers and credited to an ERISA Reserve or participant’s account.


 

Investment time frame

The length of time until you retire.


 

Large Cap

A reference to either a large company stock or an investment fund investing in the stocks of large companies. This generally refers to the stock of companies with market capitalizations over $5 billion.


 

Large-cap fund

A fund investing primarily in large-cap stocks.


 

Large-cap stocks

Stocks of companies with a large market capitalization.


 

Liable shares

The total number of shares subject to a redemption fee if redeemed.


 

Lifecycle fund

A fund designed to provide varying degrees of longterm appreciation and capital preservation, based on an investor’s age or target retirement date, through a mix of asset classes. The mix starts out with a higher risk-return position and gradually becomes less risky as the investor ages and/or nears retirement. Also known as a Target Date Fund or age-based fund.


 

Lifestyle Fund

A fund maintaining a predetermined risk level and generally uses words such as “conservative,” “moderate” or “aggressive” in its name to indicate the fund’s risk level. At the inception of the portfolio, a static allocation is established based on an expected risk/return profile. Because the value of assets can change given market conditions, the portfolio periodically needs to be re-adjusted to meet the allocation policy. Used interchangeably with target risk fund or risk-based fund.


 

Lipper

A leading mutual fund research and tracking firm. Lipper categorizes funds by objective and size, and then ranks fund performance within those categories.


 

Liquidity

The ease with which an investment can be converted into cash. If a security is very liquid, it can be bought or sold easily. If a security is not liquid, it may take additional time and/or a lower price to sell it.


 

Liquid Interest Fund (LIF)

An investment option supported by the general assets of the insurance company where a fixed rate of interest is credited.


 

Load

A sales charge assessed on certain investments to cover selling costs. A front-end load is charged at the time of purchase. A back-end load is charged at the time of sale or redemption.


 

Load fund

Mutual funds that charge a commission when shares are bought or sold.


 

Loan Administration Fee

A quarterly fee charged to a participant account for each outstanding plan loan.


 

Loan Application Fee

An annual fee charged to a participant account for each outstanding plan loan.


 

Loan Initiation Fee

An annual fee charged to a participant account for each outstanding plan loan.


 

Long-term fixed income

Long-term bond portfolios invest primarily in corporate and other investment grade U.S. fixed income issues and have durations of more than six years (or, if duration is unavailable, average effective maturities greater than 10 years).


 

Management Fee

A fee or charge paid to an investment manager for its services. A fund’s management fee is included in the total annual operating expenses.


 

Managed Portfolio Fee

A fee charged by the plan's investment advisor for overseeing the operation of the plan's managed portfolios. This fee is in the Managed Portfolio Fee box of the Fee Summary on your quarterly statement.


 

Manager tenure

The number of years the current manager has been the portfolio manager for the investment product. For products with more than one manager, the tenure of the manager who has been with the product the longest is shown. If there is only one manager who has been with the product for less than six months (and for whom we have biographical information available), a dash will appear.


 

Market Capitalization

A measure of a company's value determined by multiplying its share price by its outstanding shares.


 

Market risk

The possibility the value of an investment will fall because of a general decline in the financial markets.


 

Market Value Adjustment (MVA)

The MVA is a percentage of amounts withdrawn from the fixed interest account at contract termination or to provide certain participant benefits.  The percentage is determined by comparing interest rates earned at the time of withdrawal on amounts withdrawn to the interest rate applicable at the time to new deposits to the fixed interest account.  The resulting amount may be added to, or subtracted from, the amount withdrawn.


 

Maturity

A fee paid quarterly by plan sponsors that elect Mesirow 3(38) third-party investment assistance for the plan.

 


 

Mid Cap

A reference to either a medium-sized company stock or an investment fund that invests in the stocks of medium-sized companies, with market capitalizations generally ranging between $2 billion and $5 billion.


 

Mid-cap fund

A fund investing primarily in mid-cap stocks.


 

Mid-cap stocks

Stocks of companies with a medium market capitalization.


 

Minimum Contribution Fee

A fee charged to a plan sponsor if contributions within a plan year are less than the minimum underwriting guidelines.


 

Money Market Fund

A cash equivalent investment investing in short-term debt obligations. (**An investment in money market funds is neither insured nor guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Although money market funds seek to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money by investing in these funds.)


 

MSCI EAFE Index

An index known by an acronym for the Europe, Australasia, and Far East markets produced by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI). Markets are represented in the index according to their approximate share of world market capitalization. The index is a widely used benchmark for managers of international stock fund portfolios.


 

Mutual Fund

An investment that combines money from shareholders and invests it in numerous securities, including stocks, bonds, and short-term money market instruments. As open-ended investments, most mutual funds continuously offer new shares to investors.


 

My OneCheck Online Fee

An annual fee billed to the plan sponsor electing My OneCheck Online, an online tool that provides education and assistance to participants in selecting investments that meet their financial needs for retirement planning. The assistance includes deferral changes, investment election changes and one-time rebalance activity.


 

NASDAQ

The National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation, also called the “electronic stock market.” The NASDAQ composite index measures the performance of more than 5,000 U.S. and non-U.S. companies traded “over-the-counter” through NASDAQ.


 

NASDAQ® Composite Index

A measure of more than 3,000 companies traded on the NASDAQ over-the-counter exchange. Many are technology and Internet related, although financial, consumer and industrial companies are represented as well. The NASDAQ is weighted by market capitalization, which means larger companies have more of an impact than smaller ones when determining the overall movement of the index.


 

Net Asset Value (NAV)

A mutual fund’s share value, calculated by subtracting total liabilities from total assets to determine the fund’s net worth. The NAV is typically calculated once each business day, at the close.


 

New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)

The oldest and largest stock exchange in the United States, founded in 1792.


 

Non-cyclical Stocks

Stocks of companies whose earnings are normally not tied to the business cycle.


 

No-Load Fund

A mutual fund whose shares are sold without a sales commission and which does not charge a combined 12b-1 fee and service fee of more than 25 basis points or 0.25% per year.


 

OneAlliance Asset Charge

A percentage of the assets in separate account investment options at month-end paid to the plan’s third-party administrator.


 

Participant

Person who has an account in the plan and any beneficiaries who may be eligible to receive an account balance.


 

Passive Management

The process or approach to operating or managing a fund in a passive or non-active manner, typically with the goal of mirroring an index. These funds are often referred to as index funds and differ from investment funds that are actively managed. An index fund is an example of a passively managed investment.


 

Payroll Deduction Date

The payroll date that coincides with each contribution to a participant's account.


 

Per Capita

A method of assessing fees where a flat fee is charged to all participants regardless of their plan balances. For example, all accounts are charged $15 per quarter for recordkeeping services. In addition, fees directly traceable to a participant are normally charged per capita (for example, distribution fees).


 

Per Participant Account Fee

A fee paid for each participant account at the end of a quarter.


 

Percent in top-10 holdings

The aggregate assets, expressed as a percentage, of the fund’s top-10 portfolio holdings. This figure is meant to be a measure of portfolio risk. Specifically, the higher the percentage, the more concentrated the fund is in a few companies or issues, and the more the fund is susceptible to the market fluctuations in these few holdings. The figure is calculated from the most recent available fund holdings.


 

Periodic payments

A series of payments from the retirement account made over a certain term of years.


 

Plan

A program maintained by a plan sponsor to accumulate funds for retirement.


 

Plan Administrator

The individual, group or corporation named in the plan document as responsible for day-to-day operations. The plan sponsor is generally the plan administrator, if no other entity is named.


 

Plan Expense

An expense for plan administrative or other plan services provided that can be paid from plan assets/participant accounts at the direction of the plan sponsor.


 

Plan Sponsor

An employer or other entity that establishes and maintains your plan.


 

Plan Sponsor Advice Fee

A quarterly fee charged to plan sponsors for use of Mesirow 3(21) third-party investment advice for the plan.


 

Portfolio

A collection of investments owned by an individual or organization.


 

Portfolio Manager

The individual or firm that makes the investment decisions for an investment fund, including picking the individual investments.


 

Portfolio Turnover Rate

 

A measure of how frequently investments are bought and sold within an investment fund during a year. The portfolio turnover rate is usually expressed as a percentage of the total value of an investment fund.


 

Price-to-book ratio (P/B ratio)

The P/B ratio of a company relates the per-share market price of the company’s stock to its per-share book value, the historical accounting value of the company’s tangible assets. This figure may not always represent the real value of a company because it excludes such intangible assets as patents and trademarks.


 

Price-to-earnings ratio (P/E ratio)

The P/E ratio relates the price of the stock to the per-share earnings of the company.


 

Principal

The original dollar amount of an investment. Principal may also be used to refer to the face value or original amount of a bond.


 

Pro Rata

A method of assessing fees where fees are charged to participants in proportion to their plan balances.


 

ProNvest Fee

A fee charged to each participant account in an amount separately agreed upon by the participant with ProNvest for its services to the participant.


 

Prospectus

A document describing the financial details about a new issue and is required to be distributed to all investors prior to or at the time of the initial investment.


 

Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO)

Qualified Domestic Relations Order requiring establishment of a participant account for the spouse.


 

QDRO Review Fee

A QDRO is a judgment or decree issued pursuant to State domestic relations or community property laws (usually as a result of a divorce) that meets certain standards and assigns all or a part of a Participant’s benefit in the Plan to an Alternate Payee. A QDRO requires the establishment of a participant account for the spouse.


 

Qualified retirement plan

A retirement plan that meets the requirements stated in the Internal Revenue Code Section 401(a). Such plans provide their participants with tax benefits over non-qualified plans.


 

Rate of Return

The increase in the value of an investment, expressed as a percentage.


 

Real rate of return

The rate of return on an investment adjusted for inflation.


 

Rebalance

The process of moving money from one type of investment to another to maintain a desired asset allocation.


 

Recordkeeping Fee

The fee paid to a service provider for maintaining participant accounts, performing required testing, and providing required reports. This fee is in the Recordkeeping Fee box of the Fee Summary on your quarterly statement.


 

Redemption

Selling mutual fund shares back to the fund. Redemption can also be used to mean the repayment of a bond on or before the agreed-upon pay-off date.


 

Redemption Fee*

A fee assessed by an investment management company if shares of a particular mutual fund are purchased and sold within the minimum holding period determined by the investment management company. This fee is applied against the participant's account.


 

Redemption fee percent

The percentage charge on liable shares that are redeemed. The percentage charge is determined by the fund company and is listed in a fund’s prospectus.


 

Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) Fees

A fee charged to a plan sponsor in an amount separately agreed upon with a registered investment advisor or an investment advisor representative for services to the plan.


 

Return

Represents the average annual change in value of an investment over time, including changes in share price (gain) and income (dividends and interest) expressed as a percentage.


 

Revenue Sharing*

The portion of the mutual fund expense ratio that is paid to the insurance company.


 

Risk

The possibility that an investment will not perform as anticipated. An acceptable degree of risk must be determined by the individual with the understanding that the higher the expected return, the greater the risk factor. There are many different kinds of risk, such as exchange, inflation, interest rate, liquidity, political, et cetera. Most investors are considered to be risk adverse. That is, they seek security over risk.


 

Risk tolerance

An investor’s ability or willingness to endure declines in the prices of investments while waiting for them to increase in value. An individual investor must determine what their tolerance for risk is before selecting an appropriate asset allocation. The program uses a 1 to 100 scale of risk tolerance with 1 being the most conservative to measure your risk tolerance. You may use the Risk Advisor tool to help you assign your risk level or you may select your own risk level.


 

Round trips

A term commonly used to reference the buying and selling of the same security within a specific period of time.


 

Round-trip restriction

A policy limiting the number of times an investor can exchange into and out of a fund within a given time frame. This is intended to discourage frequent trading that increases the costs to all the fund’s investors.


 

Russell indexes

A group of indexes widely used to benchmark investment performance. The most common Russell index is the Russell 2000 Index, an index of small-cap stocks, which measures the performance of the 2,000 smallest companies in the Russell 3000 Index.


 

Russell 2000® Index

A benchmark for mutual funds that invest in small-cap companies, representing 2,000 small companies.


 

Sales Compensation Disclosure

The compensation payable to a sales producer for selling and servicing a group annuity contract.


 

Sector Fund

A government agency created by Congress in 1934 to regulate the securities industry and to help protect investors. The SEC is responsible for ensuring securities’ markets operate fairly and honestly.

 


 

Security

A general term for stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other investments.


 

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): 

A government agency created by Congress in 1934 to regulate the securities industry and to help protect investors. The SEC is responsible for ensuring securities’ markets operate fairly and honestly.


 

Separate Accounts*

A separate account is a pool of assets that is segregated from an insurance company's general account to provide participants the opportunity to experience the investment results of the underlying assets, generally mutual funds. The assets of the separate account are protected from the insurance company's creditors. Contributions by an employer or a participant to a variable contract are applied to purchase accumulation units of an investment account within the appropriate separate account. The separate account in turn purchases shares of a corresponding underlying mutual fund, mutual fund portfolio or other entity in which the separate account invests. The value of the separate account units is correlated with the performance of the underlying investment (net of fees). Due to the fluctuation in value of the assets underlying the separate account, the value of the units credited to the contractholder or the participant in the variable investment accounts of the separate account will also fluctuate, so that units may be worth more or less than the original cost when redeemed. Participants are credited with accumulation units of the separate account, not with shares of the underlying mutual fund, mutual fund portfolio or other entity.


 

Share

A representation of ownership in a company or investment fund.


 

Share Class

Some mutual funds and companies offer more than one type or group of shares, each of which is considered a class (e.g., “Class A,” “Advisor” or “Institutional” shares). For mutual funds, each class has different fees and expenses, but all the classes invest in the same pool of securities and have the same investment objectives.


 

Shareholder

An owner of shares in an investment fund or corporation.


 

Shareholder-Type Fees

Any fee charged against your investment for purchase and sale, other than the total annual operating expenses.


 

Short-term bond

Short-term bond portfolios invest primarily in corporate and other investment grade U.S. fixed income issues and have durations of one to three and a half years (or, if duration is unavailable, average effective maturities of one to four years).


 

Short-Term Investment Fund (STIF)

An investment fund investing in money market instruments of high quality and low risk. STIFs may hold cash, bank notes, corporate notes, Treasury bills, various short-term debt instruments or any combination thereof.


 

Small Cap

A reference to either a small company stock or an investment fund that invests in the stocks of small companies. With market capitalizations of less than $2 billion, companies in this category often are new companies with short histories.


 

Small cap fund

A fund investing primarily in small-cap stocks.


 

Small cap stocks

Stocks of companies with a smaller-market capitalization.


 

Stable Value Account*

An investment option supported by the general assets of the insurance company where a fixed rate of interest is credited for a stated period.


 

Stable Value Fund

An investment fund that seeks to preserve principal, provide consistent returns and liquidity. Stable value funds include collective investment funds sponsored by banks or trust companies or contracts issued by insurance companies.


 

Standard & Poor's 500SM (S&P 500®)

A popular gauge of stock market performance computed by Standard & Poor’s Corporation. The index is based on the price movement of a select group of 500 leading stocks of the New York Stock Exchange.


 

Statement of Additional Information

A supplement to the prospectus that contains detailed information about various fund policies; officers, directors and others who manage the fund; investment services; brokerage commissions and tax issues. It is available online or upon request from the fund.


 

Stocks

Ownership in a corporation, generally issued in the form of shares.


 

Stock Fund

A mutual fund holding primarily or exclusively stocks. Many stock funds are designed to meet certain financial objectives, such as capital growth and dividend income. Some funds specialize in a category of stocks, such as large cap or international companies.


 

Stock symbol

An abbreviation using letters and numbers assigned to securities to identify them. Also see Ticker symbol.


 

Sub-advisor

An investment advisor or investment manager who is appointed by another advisor or manager to help manage a portion of a client’s assets.


 

Summary prospectus

A short-form prospectus mutual funds may use with investors if they make the long-form prospectus and additional information available online or in paper, upon request.


 

Target date fund

A fund designed to provide varying degrees of long-term appreciation and capital preservation, based on an investor’s age or target retirement date, through a mix of asset classes. The mix changes over time to become less focused on growth and more focused on income. Also known as a lifecycle fund.


 

Target risk fund

A fund maintaining a predetermined asset mix and generally uses words such as “conservative,” “moderate” or “aggressive” in its name to indicate the fund’s risk level. Often used interchangeably with lifestyle fund.


 

Test File Package

Historical and indicative data that may be sent to a plan's successor service provider.


 

Third Party Plan Expense

An expense for plan administrative, legal, accounting, or other services provided by service providers other than the insurance company that can be paid from plan assets/participant accounts at the direction of the plan sponsor.


 

Ticker symbol

An abbreviation using letters and numbers assigned to securities and indexes to identify them. Also see Stock symbol.


 

Time horizon

The amount of time an investor expects to hold an investment before taking money out.


 

Total Annual Operating Expenses

A measure of what it costs to operate an investment, expressed as a percentage of its assets, as a dollar amount, or in basis points. These are costs the investor pays through a reduction in the invest ment's rate of return.


 

Total Return

Indicates how well a fund has performed over a stated period. Total return takes into account changes in net asset value, dividend and capital gains distributions. The calculation assumes the reinvestment of dividends and capital gains distributions.


 

TPA Fee

A fee charged to a plan sponsor in an amount separately agreed upon with a third-party administrator.


 

Trading restriction

A restriction imposed by the fund manager which may limit your ability to trade in the fund.


 

Transaction Date

The date on which a transaction occurs.


 

Treasury bill

Short-term debt obligation issued by the U.S. Treasury.


 

Trustee

A person or entity (e.g., bank, trust company or other organization) responsible for the safekeeping of trust assets. A trustee that is a “directed trustee” is responsible for the safekeeping of trust assets, but has no decision making authority over the assets.


 

Turnover

The percentage of a portfolio’s asset value that is bought or sold annually. Turnover represents the number of times portfolio assets are replaced. The higher the percentage, the more the manager has traded.


 

Unit Value*

The dollar value of an accumulation unit of a separate account investment option.


 

U.S. Treasury securities

Debt securities issued by the United States government and secured by its full faith and credit. Treasury securities are the debt financing instruments of the United States federal government, and they are often referred to simply as Treasuries.


 

Valuation date

The day on which the dollar value of the Collective Investment Fund’s (CIF) assets and unit values is determined.


 

Value funds

Value funds concentrate on stocks of companies the fund manager believes to be currently undervalued in the markets. The value style of investing is characterized by a view of a share of a company as a claim on the company’s assets. Value investors attempt to find companies whose net asset value is greater than is reflected in their stock prices.


 

Variable Investment Plus (VIP) Factor

A monthly amount credited to a participant’s account determined by multiplying a percentage by that participant’s month-end separate account assets.


 

Variable return investment

Investments for which the return is not fixed. This term includes stock and bond funds, as well as investments seeking to preserve principal, but do not guarantee a particular return (e.g., money market funds and stable value funds).


 

Vesting

The process by which a participant acquires a non-forfeitable right to his/her account balance under the terms of a retirement plan.


 

Volatility

The amount and frequency of fluctuations in the price of a security, commodity or a market within a specified time period. Generally, an investment with high volatility is said to have higher risk, since there is an increased chance the price of the security will have fallen when an investor wants to sell.


 

Weighted Average Interest Rate

An average interest rate that takes into consideration each interest rate being credited in a participant’s account and the corresponding balance to which it is being credited.


 

Withdrawal

Money paid to a participant or beneficiary from the participant’s account.


 

Withdrawal Charge

A percentage of the account balance that may be charged. The percentage may vary according to the terms of the group annuity contract. (May not apply to all withdrawals).


 

Withdrawal Value/Cash Value

The portion of a participant’s account balance that is available to provide certain lump-sum payments.


 

Wrap fee

A fee or expense added to an investment fund to pay for one or more bundled services, such as investment advice, investment research and brokerage services.